Paraphrasing in Meetings and Negotiations

The purpose of paraphrasing is twofold. First, it confirms that you’ve understood their main points correctly. Miscommunication is surprisingly common, even when people think they’re being clear. Second, it demonstrates that you’re genuinely listening and taking their perspective seriously.What to avoid when paraphrasing Don’t add your own spin, don’t highlight only the parts you disagree with, and don’t use paraphrasing as a setup for your counterargument. The goal is understanding, not positioning for your response.When you paraphrase effectively, you’ll often see people relax. They feel heard and understood, which creates a foundation for productive dialogue.Suppose a colleague says: “I think we’re moving too quickly with this new software implementation. The team hasn’t had adequate training, and I’m concerned we’ll create more problems than we solve. We should delay the rollout until we can do proper preparation.”A good paraphrase might be: “If I understand correctly, you’re concerned that insufficient training could lead to implementation problems, and you’d prefer to delay the rollout until the team is better prepared.”A poor paraphrase might be: “So you think we should slow everything down because people are afraid of change.”This adds interpretation (afraid of change) and judgment (slow everything down) that wasn’t in the original statement.This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit persefonecoaching.substack.com/subscribe